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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: fine · wound · clip · object · pitcher · season · chest · hide

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chest — a box
  4. wound — an injury
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. season — in sport
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. clip — for paper
  10. chest — of your body
  11. clip — to cut
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. fine — all right
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. object — an aim
  16. object — a thing
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. fine — high quality
  19. season — of the year
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. object — to protest
  23. wound — an injury
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com